Living Free

Living Free Every Day®

Today's Scripture
"He paid with Christ's sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought. Even though it has only lately—at the end of the ages—become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It's because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God." 1 Peter 1:19-21 MSG. Suggested reading 1 Peter 1:17-23.

Thoughts for Today
Jesus knows each of us personally. God knew our need before the world was created and made provision for us to be released from hand-me-downs (dysfunctional behaviors handed down from generation to generation).

Just think … Before the world began, God had a plan to set you free from hand-me-downs. You are more than a number on a computer screen or just another name in a counselor's appointment book. Jesus knows who you are, and he knows your family tree.

Consider this …
Jesus knows you … and he loves you. He has always known your needs and long ago died on the cross so that you could be set free of these things that plague you.

No matter what your childhood environment was. No matter what you have done since then. No matter what deep wounds you carry. Jesus is the answer. He is waiting for you with forgiveness and healing.

How can you make the forgiveness and healing yours? Just choose to begin following Jesus. Talk to him. And ask. Ask for forgiveness for your sins and failures. Ask for healing of the hurts. He is waiting for you with open arms.

Prayer …
Father, forgive me for the things I have done wrong. Forgive me for using my childhood as an excuse. Heal me of this tremendous pain. It is so wonderful to realize that you know me personally. That you made provision for me so many years ago when Jesus died for me. I want to be your child and follow Jesus from this point on. In Jesus' name …

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These thoughts were drawn from …

Living Free by Jimmy Ray Lee, D. Min. and Dan Strickland, M. Div. This updated version is presented in two parts. It offers information for anyone who either has a life-controlling problem or has a loved one with a life-controlling problem:

Part 1: Learning to Live Free

• Defining Life-Controlling Problems
• Mastered and Trapped by Issues
• Walls of Protection
• Family Influences
• Helping or Harming?

Part 2: Helping Others to Live Free through Small Groups

• The Small Group Strategy
• Effective Facilitation and Communication
• Launching a Living Free Ministry

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Would you like to have these Living Free Every Day® devotions appear daily on your church or ministry website? Learn More

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©Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day® devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN, www.LivingFree.org. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Living Free

Living Free Every Day®

Today's Scripture
"Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear." 1 Peter 1:17 NIV. Suggested reading 1 Peter 1:17-23.

Thoughts for Today
When a family is struggling with the life-controlling issues of one or more members, it usually becomes dysfunctional. In other words, there are relationship problems in the family that keep it from being an emotionally healthy environment.

When we grow up in a dysfunctional family environment, we live with pain and chaos. We see destructive behaviors modeled before us, and we often carry these learned behaviors into our adult lives, recreating the type of environment we grew up in by repeating the mistakes of our elders. These behaviors handed down from generation to generation are what we call hand-me-downs.

Hand-me-downs are behavior patterns that have their roots in the family system and can help us understand why we behave as we do. A child growing up accepts the behaviors they observe every day at home as normal because they have no other reference. And then as adults, they tend to create the same type of family relationships they knew as children.

Consider this …
Are you weighed down with hand-me-downs that are having a negative effect on your life? Today's scripture reading offers you hope.

First, God is fair (v. 17). Children raised by an abusive or neglectful father often have an incorrect view of God, picturing him as their earthly father. The good news is that our Heavenly Father is perfect and fair. No matter what your background, he loves you and wants you to be his child.

It is also important to recognize that God's impartiality does not take away our personal responsibility. Although we are influenced by genetic inheritance and social surroundings, we still have a personal responsibility to God. To choose him. To make him Lord of our life.

Prayer …
Father, I thank you that I can count on you to be a loving and fair father. Help me not to use my past as an excuse for my behavior. I want to turn my life—and all the hand-me-downs—over to you. To receive your healing. And to serve you. In Jesus' name …

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These thoughts were drawn from …

Living Free by Jimmy Ray Lee, D. Min. and Dan Strickland, M. Div. This updated version is presented in two parts. It offers information for anyone who either has a life-controlling problem or has a loved one with a life-controlling problem:

Part 1: Learning to Live Free

• Defining Life-Controlling Problems
• Mastered and Trapped by Issues
• Walls of Protection
• Family Influences
• Helping or Harming?

Part 2: Helping Others to Live Free through Small Groups

• The Small Group Strategy
• Effective Facilitation and Communication
• Launching a Living Free Ministry

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Would you like to have these Living Free Every Day® devotions appear daily on your church or ministry website? Learn More

---

©Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day® devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN, www.LivingFree.org. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Living Free

Living Free Every Day®

Today's Scripture
"For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God." 1 Peter 1:18-19 NLT. Suggested reading 1 Peter 1:17-23.

Thoughts for Today
There are no perfectly functional families because there are no perfect people. All of us suffer some dysfunction, and that is why recognizing destructive patterns in relationships is important.

One person struggling with a life-controlling problem can have a domino effect on the entire family—both now and in the future. We tend to carry hand-me-downs into our adult life and begin to build the same dysfunctional patterns we experienced as a child into our marriage and other relationships.

Consider this …
Is your life heavily influenced by hand-me-downs? Do you sometimes feel as though there is no way out? No way to be free of those negative influences?

Good news! Christ offers release from enslaving hand-me-downs. This comes with "… not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God." Christ provided the payment of this release with his precious blood. Jesus said, "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." John 8:36 NIV

You have a choice. You can continue dragging the hand-me-downs along … or you can ask Jesus to set you free. You have been influenced by these negatives for a long time, and the road to freedom may require a process. But remember, Jesus has paid the price for your freedom, and he will be at your side as you take the journey away from enslaving hand-me-downs and into a life of freedom in him.

Prayer …
Father, I know that these negative things from my childhood are affecting my relationships today. And I know they are preventing me from being all you have designed me to be. Thank you that Jesus paid the price for my freedom. Please set me free. In Jesus' name …

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These thoughts were drawn from …

Living Free by Jimmy Ray Lee, D. Min. and Dan Strickland, M. Div. This updated version is presented in two parts. It offers information for anyone who either has a life-controlling problem or has a loved one with a life-controlling problem:

Part 1: Learning to Live Free

• Defining Life-Controlling Problems
• Mastered and Trapped by Issues
• Walls of Protection
• Family Influences
• Helping or Harming?

Part 2: Helping Others to Live Free through Small Groups

• The Small Group Strategy
• Effective Facilitation and Communication
• Launching a Living Free Ministry

---

Would you like to have these Living Free Every Day® devotions appear daily on your church or ministry website? Learn More

---

©Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day® devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN, www.LivingFree.org. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Living Free

Living Free Every Day®

Today's Scripture
"I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me." Exodus 20:5 NLT

Thoughts for Today
When we are struggling with life-controlling problems, one of the most damaging delusions we entertain is that our problems are not hurting anyone other than ourselves. On the contrary, one person's problems affect a network of personal relationships. The closer the relationship, the greater the impact. For example, our misbehavior may only slightly affect our job performance, but it may devastate our immediate family. This is known as the domino effect.

If a husband is too involved at work, this may trigger conflict with his wife. The parents' preoccupation with their own issues, in turn, may cause one child to misbehave at school and another to turn to an eating disorder. As this happens again and again, relationships are destroyed.

Consider this …
We use the term family system to describe the attitudes and patterns by which families operate. When one member of the family system has a problem, the others will deal with the problem according to the pattern they have learned. Each family member is an element in the whole, affecting and being affected by the system.

We can become more effective in helping ourselves and others when we understand that all of us are affected by a system of relationships that extends into past generations and that our actions will also impact future generations.

Prayer …
Father, help me to better understand this bigger picture of how my behavior can have long-lasting ripple effects on those around me. Help me make the changes that will turn my influence from negative to positive. In Jesus' name …

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These thoughts were drawn from …

Living Free by Jimmy Ray Lee, D. Min. and Dan Strickland, M. Div. This updated version is presented in two parts. It offers information for anyone who either has a life-controlling problem or has a loved one with a life-controlling problem:

Part 1: Learning to Live Free

• Defining Life-Controlling Problems
• Mastered and Trapped by Issues
• Walls of Protection
• Family Influences
• Helping or Harming?

Part 2: Helping Others to Live Free through Small Groups

• The Small Group Strategy
• Effective Facilitation and Communication
• Launching a Living Free Ministry

---

Would you like to have these Living Free Every Day® devotions appear daily on your church or ministry website? Learn More

---

©Living Free 2007. Living Free is a registered trademark. Living Free Every Day® devotionals may be reproduced for personal use. When reproduced to share with others, please acknowledge the source as Living Free, Chattanooga, TN, www.LivingFree.org. Must have written permission to use in any format to be sold. Permission may be requested by sending an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.